Using physical location to modify behavior of a distributed virtual network element

ABSTRACT

A system for network virtualization in which physical network resources in different physical contexts are configured to implement one or more distributed logical network elements, at least some of the physical network resources implementing the distributed logical network elements configured according the physical context of those network resources. The local configuration of a physical locale is a version of the logical configuration that is modified specifically for the physical locale. Such modification is based on locale identifiers that are assigned to the physical locales. Some systems use locale-specific information to modify next-hop preference. Some system use locally modified configurations to determine the placement of VMs.

CLAIM OF BENEFIT TO PRIOR APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application 61/057,963, filed Sep. 30, 2014. U.S. Provisional Patent Applications 62/057,963 is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

The benefits of network virtualization are well known. VMware® NSX® is a product suite that allows for virtualizing the network for VMs. NSX provides the network elements as fundamental building blocks of a distributed virtual network, elements such as Distributed Logical Switches (for providing L2 based packet forwarding) and Distributed Logical Routers (for providing L3 based packet forwarding).

The notion of a distributed logical network element (e.g., a distributed logical Switch or Router) is powerful since it allows the operator a construct a virtual network while hiding the underlying physical network connectivity and its limitations. The only thing required from the underlying physical infrastructure is that it is capable of forwarding Ethernet encapsulated IP frames.

The distributed logical network element is instantiated on a number of physical nodes (e.g. hypervisors) that participate in the logical network. These nodes also provide uniform packet forwarding capabilities in software. The control plane is responsible in configuring these uniform policies on the participating hypervisor nodes. These policies and configurations are necessarily at the logical level. In other words, they are not concerned with the underlying physical topology. This approach works well where the underlying physical network provides “uniform connectivity” to all participating hypervisors. By “uniform connectivity”, all the hypervisors are connected to a network with similar properties like latency, throughput, etc.

SUMMARY

Some embodiments of the invention provide a system for network virtualization in which physical network resources in different physical contexts are configured to implement one or more distributed logical network elements, at least some of the physical network resources implementing the distributed logical network elements being configured according the physical context of those network resources. In some embodiments, some of the distributed logical network elements are logical forwarding elements such as distributed logical switches and/or distributed logical routers. In some embodiments, the distributed logical network elements are implemented by virtualization software or hypervisors running on host machines that are situated in different physical locales (e.g., sites or data centers).

In some embodiment, a local configuration of a physical locale is a version of the logical configuration that is modified specifically for the physical locale. In some embodiments, such modification is based on locale identifiers that are assigned to the physical locales. In some embodiments, the local configuration is locally provided by the physical locale itself. In some embodiments, the local configuration is provided by a centralized network controller or manager, which delivers local configurations to each of the physical locales. In some embodiments, local configurations are embedded in the logical configuration of the entire network, and it is up to a physical locale to identify portions of the logical configuration as being applicable to that physical locale. The networking and computing resources of the locale (e.g., virtualization software in host machines) in turn uses the assigned locale identifier to identify applicable local configuration embedded in the logical configuration.

Different embodiments use locale-specific information differently to modify the behavior of distributed logical network elements. Some embodiments use locale-specific information to modify next-hop preference. Some embodiments perform ECMP to select the next hop from VMs, MPSEs, and/or MPREs based on locale-specific information. In some embodiments, locally modified configurations are used to determine the placement of VMs. In some embodiments, a VM placement engine uses locale specific information to decide the placement of VMs, i.e., to select a suitable host machine in a suitable physical locale hosting the VM based on the locale-specific information of all the physical locales.

The preceding Summary is intended to serve as a brief introduction to some embodiments of the invention. It is not meant to be an introduction or overview of all inventive subject matter disclosed in this document. The Detailed Description that follows and the Drawings that are referred to in the Detailed Description will further describe the embodiments described in the Summary as well as other embodiments. Accordingly, to understand all the embodiments described by this document, a full review of the Summary, Detailed Description and the Drawings is needed. Moreover, the claimed subject matters are not to be limited by the illustrative details in the Summary, Detailed Description and the Drawings, but rather are to be defined by the appended claims, because the claimed subject matters can be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit of the subject matters.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The novel features of the invention are set forth in the appended claims. However, for purpose of explanation, several embodiments of the invention are set forth in the following figures.

FIG. 1 illustrates a network in which distributed logical network elements are implemented over physical elements that are each configured according the physical contexts of those physical elements.

FIG. 2 conceptually illustrates the available networking and computing resources in the physical locales of the network.

FIG. 3 illustrates the virtualization software running in host machines in the different locales.

FIG. 4 illustrates using assigned locale identifier to identify applicable portions of the logical configuration.

FIG. 5 conceptually illustrates the modification of logical configuration into locale-specific configuration at the physical locales.

FIGS. 6 a-b conceptually illustrate processes for using physical location information to modify the behaviors of distributed logical network elements in logical configurations.

FIG. 7 conceptually illustrates using locale specific modification when performing ECMP for deciding the next hop of a distributed logical network elements.

FIG. 8 illustrates a VM placement engine that uses locale-specific information to decide the placement of VMs in a network.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example host machine that is operating virtualization software.

FIG. 10 conceptually illustrates an electronic system with which some embodiments of the invention are implemented.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, numerous details are set forth for the purpose of explanation. However, one of ordinary skill in the art will realize that the invention may be practiced without the use of these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order not to obscure the description of the invention with unnecessary detail.

Network virtualization is powerful because it frees the operator of the network from having to actively manage the underlying physical network connectivity and limitations. However, in many instances, being aware of its own physical context allows a hypervisor to optimize its own performance and throughput based on its physical context, even while participating in a logical network element for network virtualization. Such physical context includes the hardware of the host machine that implements hypervisor, and of the local networking environment within which the host machine is situated. For a host machine that is situated in a data center, the infrastructure of the site also constitutes the physical context of the hypervisor.

Some embodiments of the invention provide a system for network virtualization in which physical network resources in different physical contexts are configured to implement one or more distributed logical network elements, at least some of the physical network resources implementing the distributed logical network elements being configured according the physical context of those network resources. In some embodiments, some of the distributed logical network elements are logical forwarding elements such as distributed logical switches and/or distributed logical routers. In some embodiments, the distributed logical network elements are implemented by virtualization software or hypervisors running on host machines that are situated in different physical locales (e.g., sites or data centers). FIG. 1 illustrates a network 100 in which distributed logical network elements are implemented over physical elements that are each configured according the physical contexts of those physical elements.

FIG. 1 includes a logical view 101 and a physical view 102 of the network 100. The logical view of the network 100 is a logical abstraction of the system that hides or encapsulates underlying physical realities of the network. Managing the network 100 through its logical abstraction frees the operator of the network from having to manage the actual physical peculiarities of the network. In some embodiments, the logical view 101 reflects a view of the network 100 as defined according to a logical configuration 105. The underlying physical infrastructure is in turn configured according to the logical configuration in order to implement the network 100.

As illustrated, the logical view 101 (or the logical configuration) of the network includes virtual machines (VM) 111-118, a logical switch (L2 forwarding elements) 121 for a network segment A, a logical switch 122 for network segment B, a logical router/bridge (L3 forwarding element) 131, and an edge gateway 141. The VMs 111-114 belong to the network segment A and are interconnected by the logical switch 121. The VMs 115-118 belong to the network segment B and are interconnected by the logical switch 122. The network segments A and B (121 and 122) are interconnected by the logical router/bridge 131, which is in turn connected to the Internet through the edge gateway 141. In some embodiments, a network segment can be an IP subnet (such as VLAN) or an encapsulation overlay network such as VXLAN. In some embodiments, each L2 network segment is identified by or referred to by a network segment identifier such as VNI (VXLAN network identifier). The logical router/bridge 131 forwards packet between different network segments 121 and 122. In some embodiments, the logical router/bridge 131 forward packets by L3 routing (e.g., using destination L3 IP address to look up destination VNI and destination L2 MAC address) and/or by bridging (using destination L2 MAC address to lookup destination VNI).

In some embodiments, the logical configuration is specified irrespective of the underlying physical realities. In other words, the logical configuration is produced as if the connectivity of the underlying physical infrastructure is uniform and there is no distinction between resources in one locale versus resources in another locale. However, in some embodiments, the logical configuration is implemented over network resources that are situated in different physical locations such that each distributed logical network element (such as 121, 122, and 131) can span across multiple physical locations.

The physical view 102 illustrates the underlying physical infrastructure that implements the logical configuration of the network 100. As illustrated, the network 100 is implemented over four physical locales 191-194 (“SFO”, “LAX”, “SJC”, and “NYC”). The four physical locales 191-194 are interconnected by inter-locale connections 180, which is provided by the Internet in some embodiments. Each of these locales provides a set of computing resources for implementing virtual machine as sell as networking resources for implementing logical switches and routers/bridges.

The logical switches 121 and 122, as well as the logical router/bridge 131 of the logical configuration 105 span the four physical locales. Each of these logical forwarding elements (121, 122, and 131) are implemented in a distributed fashion by the physical forwarding elements in those four locales 191-194. Specifically, the logical switch 121 is implemented by physical forwarding elements A1-A2 of locale 191, A3-A4 of locale 192, A5-A6 of locale 193, and A7-A8 of locale 194. The logical switch 122 is implemented by physical forwarding elements B1-B2 of locale 191, B3-B4 of locale 192, B5-B6 of locale 193, and B7-B8 of locale 194. The logical router/bridge 131 is implemented by physical forwarding elements R1-R2 of locale 191, R3-R4 of locale 192, R5-R6 of locale 193, and R7-R8 of locale 194. In other words, the forwarding elements are implemented on networking and/or computing resources that span the four physical locales 191-194.

The VMs 111-118 (V1-V8) are likewise implemented on computing resources that span the four physical locales. Specifically, the VMs 111-112 are implemented by computing resources in “SFO”, the VMs 113-114 are implemented by computing resources in “LAX”, the VMs 115-116 are implemented by computing resources in the locale “SJC” (193), and the VMs 117-118 are implemented by computing resources in the locale “NYC” (194).

In some embodiments, each physical locale is a data center that includes its own collection of interconnected network resources. Each physical location has its own set of properties, capabilities and limitations. Such local properties can include the number and types of networking and computing resources available, the bandwidth of interconnections connecting the networking resources, the latencies for sending data packets between the networking and computing resources, etc. The different physical locales can also be geographically separated as to impose significant latency for data to travel from one physical locale to another. The communication mediums that links the different physical locations are likely of limited speed and throughput (e.g., the Internet) when compared with what is available within a data center or within a computing device.

Each physical locale is associated with a set of local configurations that is based on the properties, capabilities, and limitations of the physical locale. When applied, the local configuration of a physical locale modifies the behavior of networking and computing resources of the physical locale away from the uniformity specified by the logical configuration in some embodiments. In some embodiments, the local configuration of a physical locale is based on locale specific properties of the physical locale. This is unlike a logical configuration in some embodiments, which hides the local peculiarities of the different locales from user and treats the entire network as a uniform pool of resources and connections. In some embodiments, the local configuration of a locale distinguishes physical components in the locale from physical components from other locales. In some embodiments, the local configuration prefers or forbids using certain network resources under certain conditions. In some embodiments, the local configuration reserves network resources for traffic from certain nodes. In some embodiments, the local configuration is based on performance metrics (such as latency, available memory, available bandwidth, etc.) of physical components in the network. In some embodiments, the local configuration is made to optimize resource usage in the physical locale in order to balance load, avoid congested routing resources, guarantee bandwidth, or perform equal cost multi-path routing (ECMP).

As illustrated, the local configurations of the locales 191-194 (“SFO”, “LAX”, “SJC”, and “NYC”) are conceptually illustrated as having local configurations 151, 152, 153, and 154, respectively. These local configurations are unlike the logical configuration (i.e., the logical view 101) of the network, which is applicable uniformly to all four physical locales. The local configuration 151 is applicable only to resources within the locale “SFO”. The local configuration 152 is applicable only to resources within the locale “LAX”. The local configuration 153 is applicable only to resources within the locale “SJC”. The local configuration 154 is applicable only to resources within the locale “NYC”.

FIG. 2 conceptually illustrates the available networking and computing resources in the physical locales 191-194 (“SFO”, “LAX”, “SJC”, “NYC”) of the network 100. As illustrated, each physical locale includes a set of computing devices labeled as “host” (hosts 211-213 in the locale 191, hosts 221-223 in the locale 192, hosts 231-233 in the locale 193, and hosts 241-243 in the locale 194). These computing devices are running virtualization software (labeled “VSW”) that allows the computing resource to serve as host machines of VMs. The virtualization software running in the host machines are configured according to the logical configuration 105 of the network 100, which allows the host machines to instantiate local copies of the logical switch 121-122 and of the logical router/bridge 131 as physical forwarding elements. Some of the physical locales also include networking devices labeled as “ToR” (Top of Rack) or “PH” (physical routers). These network devices perform packet forwarding tasks (L3/L2/bridging), but do not operate virtualization software. The host machines, ToRs, and PHs of a physical locale are interconnected by intra-locale connectivity of the physical locale. The computing and routing resources of the physical locale are then connected to the Internet through a gateway device labeled as “GWY”.

As mentioned, the computing and network resources of each physical locale are configured according to a set of local configuration in addition to the logical configuration of the network 100. As illustrated, the computing and network resources (host machines, PH's, ToRs, etc) of the physical locales 191-194 are configured by local configurations 151-154, respectively. In some embodiments, the local configurations are used to configure the computing and networking resource of each physical locale according to the local properties of each locale. For example, different locales can have different number of computing devices that serve as host machines. Different locale can have different types of computing devices that serve as host machines. Different locale can have different number or types of ToRs or PHs. The intra-locale connectivity of one locale can have different capacity or latency than the intra-locale connectivity of another locale. And sending packets to a computing or networking resource of a same locale through intra-locale connectivity generally requires less latency than through the Internet to a computing or networking resource of a different locale.

FIG. 3 illustrates the virtualization software running in host machines in the different locales. The virtualization software manages the operations of the VMs as well as their access to the computing resources and the network resources of the host machines. In some embodiments, the virtualization software provides an interface between each VM and a logical switch supported by the underlying network. Virtualization software may include one or more software components and/or layers, possibly including one or more of the software components known in the field of virtual machine technology as virtual machine monitors (VMMs), hypervisors, or virtualization kernels. Because virtualization terminology has evolved over time and has not yet become fully standardized, these terms do not always provide clear distinctions between the software layers and components to which they refer. As used herein, the term, “hypervisor” is intended to generically refer to a software layer or component logically interposed between a virtual machine and the host platform. Computing devices that serve as host machines will be further described in Section III below.

FIG. 3 illustrates four host machines 211, 221, 231, and 241 that are in locales 191-194 (“SFO”, “LAX”, “SJC”, and “NYC”), respectively. Each of these host machines is running virtualization software that allows it to be part of the logical configuration 105 of the network 100. The virtualization software allows its host machine to operate local instantiations of the logical switches and logical routers/bridges in the logical configuration. As mentioned, the logical configuration 105 includes the logical switches 121-122 and the logical router/bridge 131. A local instantiation of the logical switch 121 in a host machine is a L2 physical switching element for the network segment A. A local instantiation of the logical switch 122 in a host machine is a L2 physical switching element for the network segment B. A local instantiation of the logical routing/bridging element in a host machine is a physical routing or bridging element. As these physical forwarding elements are managed by the virtualization software, they are also referred to as managed physical switching elements (MPSE) and managed physical routing elements (MPRE). Further descriptions of MPSEs, MPREs, logical routing elements (LREs), and logical switching elements (LSEs) can be found in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/137,862 filed on Dec. 20, 2013, titled “Logical Router”. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/137,862 is herein incorporated by reference.

According to the logical configuration 105 of the network 100, the host machine 211 instantiates MPSEs 311 and 321 as physical forwarding elements A1, B1. The host machine 211 also instantiates an MPRE 331 as the physical forwarding element R1. The physical forwarding elements A3, B3, R3, A5, B5, R5, A7, B7, R7 are likewise implemented by instantiations of MPSEs and MPRE in the host machines 221, 231, and 241. (In some embodiments, MPSEs of different network segments in a same host machine are implemented as one MPSE in that host machine. Such an MPSE distinguishes L2 traffic of different network segment by VNI identifiers in some embodiments).

In addition to the MPSEs and the MPREs, the virtualization software of a host machine also implements local configurations that are specific to the physical locale or to the host machine. In some embodiments, the virtualization software of a host machine of a locale uses information specific to that locale to modify next hop decisions. As illustrated, the host machine 211 has information 341 specific to the locale “SFO”, and it uses this locale information to create or modify a set of next hop tables 351. The MPSE 311 and the MPRE 321 in the host machines 211 in turn use the modified next hop tables to select the destination for the packets it produces. Likewise, the MPSEs and the MPREs in the host machines 221, 231, and 241 also uses their respective local configuration or locale information to determine next hop. In other words, the physical locale information (or local configuration) modifies the behaviors of the distributed logical network elements (MPSEs and MPREs) that are specified by the logical configuration.

Several more detailed embodiments of the invention are described below. Section I describes methods for implementing locale-specific configuration for modifying the behavior of distributed logical network elements. Section II describes examples of using locale-specific configurations to modify behaviors of distributed logical network elements. Section III describes an example communications device that implements some embodiments of the invention. Finally, section IV describes an electronic system with which some embodiments of the invention are implemented.

I. Implementing Locale-Specific Configurations

Different embodiments implement local configurations specific to physical locales (or locale-specific configurations) differently. In some embodiment, a local configuration of a physical locale is a version of the logical configuration modified specifically for the physical locale. In some embodiments, such modification is based on locale identifiers that are assigned to the physical locales. In some embodiments, the local configuration is locally provided by the physical locale itself. In some embodiments, the local configuration is provided by a centralized network controller or manager, which delivers local configurations to each of the physical locales. In some embodiments, local configurations are embedded in the logical configuration of the entire network, and it is up to a physical locale to identify portions of the logical configuration as being applicable to that physical locale. The networking and computing resources of the locale (e.g., virtualization software in host machines) in turn uses the assigned locale identifier to identify applicable local configuration embedded in the logical configuration.

An example portion of a logical configuration is a definition of a route entry for a logical router (e.g., the logical router 131), which in some embodiments is a directive/command/definition/statement that looks like:

<destination-network/prefix> via nexthop <nh> forward on interface <id>  (1)

Thus, a logical configuration statement “0/0 via nexthop 192.168.1.1 forward on interface lif0” would be globally applicable to all physical locales. However, this definition does not account for any modifier based on physical locales. A route entry having a locale based modifier looks like:

<destination-network/prefix> via nexthop <nh> on locale <locale-id> forward on interface <id>  (2)

Such a route entry is a directive that allows locale-specific property to be taken into consideration. Thus, a route entry “0/0 via nexthop 192.168.1.1 on locale ‘NYC’ forward on interface lif0” is a route entry having locale modifier “NYC”. It is a local configuration that would be recognized as a local configuration specific to locale “NYC” while being ignored by other locales based on the locale ID “NYC”. Likewise a route entry “0/0 via nexthop 192.168.1.2 on locale ‘LAX’ forward on interface lif0” is a route entry having local modifier “LAX”. It would be recognized as a local configuration specific to locale “LAX” while being ignored by other locales based on the locale ID “LAX”.

FIG. 4 illustrates using assigned locale identifier to identify applicable portions of the logical configuration. The figure illustrates the logical configuration 105 for the network 100 that includes portions applicable to all physical locales as well as portions that are locale specific. As illustrated, the logical configuration 105 includes a globally applicable portion 410 that is applicable to all locales. The logical configuration 105 also includes portions 411-414 that are specific to locales 191-194 (“SFO”, “LAX”, “SJC”, and “NYC”), respectively. In some embodiments, such locale-specific portions of the logical configuration include directives having locale specific modifiers such as route entry (2) described above.

In order for each physical location to identify portions of the logical configuration 105 that are applicable to them, a network manager 150 first assigns locale identifiers to the physical locales. In some embodiment, each physical locale receives its locale identifier during an initial configuration phase of the network 100. The physical locale then uses the receive locale ID to identify and apply applicable portions of the logical configuration while ignoring portions of the logical configuration that is applicable only to other physical locales. In other words, each physical locale uses the physical locale identifier as a filter to accept and apply only relevant portions of the logical configuration. For example, the locale “SFO” (191) uses its assigned locale identifier to accept only the global configuration 410 and the portion 411 that is specific to the locale “SFO”. In some embodiments, portions of the logical configuration that are specific to a physical locale are marked by the identifier of that physical locale, so each physical locale identifies the relevant portion of the logical configuration by comparing its own received physical locale ID with the locale IDs that marks the different portions of the logical configuration. A process for identifying locale-specific portions of logical configuration as local configuration is described by reference to FIG. 6 a below.

FIG. 4 also conceptually illustrates a filter for each of the physical locales (locale filters 421-424 for locales 191-194, respectively), which uses the locale ID of its physical locale to filter-in relevant portions of the logical configuration for its locale. In some embodiments, the filtering of the logical configuration for a physical locale is performed by the networking and computing resources within the locale (such as by virtualization software of the host machines). In some embodiments, the filtering of the logical configuration is performed by a local configuration manager in each of the locales.

As mentioned, in some embodiment, a local configuration of a physical locale is a version of the logical configuration that is modified specifically for the physical locale. In some of these embodiments, at least some of the modification is performed at the physical locales themselves based on their locale-specific properties. FIG. 5 conceptually illustrates the modification of logical configuration into locale-specific configuration at the physical locales. As illustrated, the network manager 150 delivers the logical configuration 105 to each of the physical locales 191-194. Each of the physical locales then performs local modification on the received logical configuration based on information or properties specific to that locale to produce a set of local configuration specific to that locale. For example, the locale “SFO” (191) modifies logical configuration 105 into a SFO specific local configuration 511 based on SFO specific information 521. The modification is performed by a local modification module 501, which in some embodiments is part of the virtualization software operating in host machines of the physical locale 191.

The locale specific information (e.g., the “SFO” local information 521) in some embodiments includes portions of the logical configuration that is relevant to the locale provided by the network manager 150, such as the locale specific portions 411-414 of the logical configuration or the locale specific route entry for a logical router as described above. The locale specific information in some embodiments includes static network topology of the physical locale (e.g., a data center), which is provided by a central network manager in some embodiments in which the network manager has such information. In some embodiments, the locale specific information is furnished locally by a local network manager (e.g., the local manager 531 of the physical locale “SFO” 191). In some embodiments, the locally furnished information includes static network topology of the physical locale. In some embodiments, the locally furnished information includes dynamic network metrics of the physical locale that are updated in real time (such as latency, available memory, available bandwidth, etc.) A process for modifying logical configuration based on locale-specific information is described by reference to FIG. 6 b below.

For some embodiments, FIGS. 6 a-b conceptually illustrate processes for using physical location information to modify the behaviors of distributed logical network elements in logical configurations. FIG. 6 a conceptually illustrates a process 601 for using physical locale identifier to identify locale-specific portions of the logical configuration (or configuration definitions having a specific locale modifier). FIG. 6 b conceptually illustrates a process 602 for modifying logical configuration based on locale specific information. In some embodiments, the processes 601 and 602 are performed by the virtualization software of a host machine in a physical locale.

Some embodiments perform the process 601 during initial configuration of a network according to a logical configuration. For example, the host machines (i.e., their virtualization software) in the physical locales 191-194 perform the process 601 when the network manager 150 is configuring the underlying physical hardware according to the logical configuration 105.

The process 601 starts when it receives (at 610) a locale identifier from the network manager. The locale identifier is the identifier that the network manager assigns to the physical locale that includes host machine running the process. The process then receives (at 620) logical configuration from the network manager. In some embodiments, the process receives the locale identifier and the logical configuration through control plane communications with the network manager.

Next, the process identifies (at 630) applicable portions of the logical configuration based on the received locale ID that is assigned to the physical locale of the host machine. In some embodiments, the process filters the logical configuration to accept only relevant portions of the logical configuration, i.e., the portions that are either globally applicable to all physical locations or the portions that are marked by the matching locale ID. In some embodiments, the relevant portions of the logical configuration are configuration definitions/statements/directives that are modified by a locale ID (e.g., the locale-ID-modified route entry (2)).

Finally, the process configures (at 640) the distributed logical network elements (e.g., MPSE and MPRE) by applying the portions of the logical configuration identified as relevant to this physical locale. In some embodiments, the globally applicable portions of the logical configuration instantiates the distributed logical network elements, while the locale-specific portions of the logical configuration modifies the behavior of the instantiated distributed logical network elements. The process 601 then ends.

The process 601 is a process for configuring a physical locale based on information provided by a network manager during an initial configuration of the network. The process 602 is on the other hand a process for modifying a received logical configuration. Some embodiments performs the process 602 after the initial configuration by modifying the received logical configuration based on locale specific information, which in some embodiments includes network topology from the perspective of the physical locale and/or static/dynamic network performance metrics that are provided by the physical locale. Some embodiments perform the process 602 during or soon after the initial configuration.

The process 602 receives (at 650) the logical configuration from network manager during initial configuration. The process 602 then identifies (at 660) the locale specific information. In some embodiments, the process 602 identifies the locale specific information within the configuration data transmitted by the central network manager. In some embodiments, the process 602 identifies the locale specific information from information that are available locally at the physical locale, such as dynamic real-time performance matrix of the locale or the network topology of the locale.

The process then modifies (at 670) the logical configuration based on the identified locale specific information. The process then configures (at 680) the distributed logical network elements in the logical configuration by applying the modified logical configuration. For example, in some embodiments, the process modifies the logical configuration by modifying next hop preferences of a MPSE or MPRE based on identified locale information (hence modifying the MPSE/MPRE's behavior). The locale-specific information in some embodiments includes information on networking resources in the locale that allows a distributed logical network element to select or avoid a particular node as next hop. After applying the modified logical configuration, the process 602 ends.

II. Use Cases of Locale-Specific Configurations

Different embodiments use locale-specific information differently to modify the behavior of distributed logical network elements. For example, as mentioned, some embodiments use locale-specific information to modify next-hop preferences. Specifically, some embodiments perform ECMP to select the next hop from VMs, MPSE, and/or MPREs. The locale-specific information or modified logical configuration allows the next-hop selection for these globally configured distributed logical network elements to operate based on local information that are hidden from the central operator of the network.

For some embodiments, FIG. 7 conceptually illustrates using locale specific modification when performing ECMP for deciding the next hop of a distributed logical network elements. The figure illustrates the modification of the logical configuration for the VM 112 (V2) and the MPSE 311 (A1) based on locale-specific information of the locale 191 “SFO” (since both V2 and A1 are instantiated in host machines of the locale 191).

As illustrated, the logical configuration 105 of the network 100 includes, among others, next hop table 701 for the VM 112 (V2) and next hop table 702 for the MPSE 311 (A1). The VM 112 belongs to network segment B, and hence all MPSEs of the logical switch B 122 (B1-B8) are eligible as next hop for the VM 112. The MPSE 311 (A1) is an instantiation of the logical switch element 121 for the network segment A (logical switch A). Since the logical router 131 is a next hop of the logical switch A, all of the MPREs belonging to the logical router 131 (R1-R8) are eligible as next hop for MPSE 311. However, these eligible hops are determined strictly from the logical configuration point of view without considering any locale-specific information.

The content of the logical configuration 111 is processed by the locale specific modification module 501 of the locale “SFO”. The module 501 uses information specific to the locale “SFO” (local information 521) to modify the logical configuration 105 for the distributed logical network elements (MPSEs and MPREs) running in the host machines of the physical locale “SFO”. In some embodiments (not illustrated), the locale specific modification is based on relevant portions of the logical configuration that are identified by a locale ID assigned by the network manager. The locale specific modification 501 produces a locale-modified configuration 711 for the VM 112 (V2) and a locale-modified configuration 712 for the MPSE 311 (A1)

The locale-modified configurations distinguish between the possible different next hops of a distributed logical network element. Specifically, the modified configuration 711 distinguishes between possible next hops B1-B8 based on their separation from the VM 112 (V2), while the modified configuration 712 distinguishes between the possible next hops R1-R8 based on their separation from the MPSE 311 (A1). Such distinctions are made possible by the locale specific information 521, which identifies next hops in this physical locale/data center versus next hops in other physical locales/data center. For example, the modified configuration 711 identifies B1 and B2 as next hops in the same data center as V2 (also in locale “SFO”), B5 and B6 as next hops in a near data center (in locale “SJC”), B3, B4, B7, and B8 as next hops that are either far or very far (local “LAX” or “NYC”). Based on the information, a ECMP module 721 for the VM 112 will be able to next hop selection decisions that are optimized based on the locale specific information (e.g., by favoring or weighing toward next hops that are near or in the same data center). The ECMP module 722 likewise makes next hop decisions based on locale information that distinguishes between R1-R8 as next hops (R1 and R2 being in the same data center as A1, R5 and R6 being in a near data center, R3, R4, R7, R8 being in far data center).

The modified configuration 712 is an example local configuration that uses locale-specific parameters (i.e., geographic separation from the current locale) to characterize the possible next hops. FIG. 7 also illustrates other example modified configurations (762 and 772) that use other locale-specific parameters to characterize the possible next hops.

The modified configuration 762 reports the latencies to/from the possible next hops R1-R8 of the MPSE 311 (A1). The ECMP module 722 can then use the reported latencies to select the next hop. As illustrated, next hops R1 and R2 has the smallest latencies (possibly because they are in the same locale “SFO”), while next hops R7 and R8 has the largest latencies (possibly because they are in a distant locale “NYC”). In some embodiments, the latency metrics reported in the modified configuration 762 are based on real-time measurements obtained by the physical hardware of the locale. In some embodiments, the latency metrics reported are historical averages that can be supplied locally by data center or centrally by the central network manager (e.g., 150).

The modified configuration 772 specifies directives or commands that are associated with each of the possible next hops. As illustrated, R3, R4, R7, and R8 are specified as “forbidden” for traffic from MPSE A1, while R2 is specified as “preferred”. R1 has a directive that says “reserved for V1” such that only traffic originated from the VM 111 (V1) may use R1 as next hop. Directives such as these are used by some embodiments to guarantee bandwidth for a particular VM by e.g., reserving a networking resource for traffic from the particular VM. Such directives can be specified locally by the data center or centrally by the network manager (e.g., 150) in some embodiments.

In some embodiments, modified configurations of different types are used jointly by ECMP modules when selecting a next hop. For example, the ECMP module 722 can use the information from any or all of the modified configurations 712, 762, and 772 when selecting a next hop. Though not illustrated, other locale-specific parameters can also be used to characterize next hops (e.g., storage capacity of computing device, processor speed, etc.). More generally, different locale-specific parameters can be used to modify the behaviors of distributed logical network elements or to modify uniform/global logical configurations that are centrally specified by a network manager.

In some embodiments, locally modified configurations are used to determine the placement of VMs. As mentioned, a logical network may span multiple data centers in different geographical locations. In some embodiments, the operator or the user of the logical network does not specify or care which host machine in which data center is hosting the VM, but a VM placement engine uses locale specific information to decide the placement of VMs, (i.e., to select a suitable host machine in a suitable physical locale hosting the VM based on the locale-specific information of all the physical locales).

For some embodiments, FIG. 8 illustrates a VM placement engine 810 that uses locale-specific information to decide the placement of VMs in a network. The figure illustrates the locale-specific information based VM placement in two stages 801-802.

At the first stage 801, the VM placement engine 810 receives locale-specific information 521-524 for the locales 191-194 (“SFO”, “LAX, “SJC”, and “NYC”). In some embodiments, such information are generated and provided by the physical locales (data centers) themselves. In some embodiments such information are maintained and provided centrally by the network manager (e.g., 150). The VM placement engine 810 also receives a list of VMs that needs to be placed from the logical configuration 105 of the network 100.

At the second stage 802, the VM placement engine 810 assigns the VMs specified by the logical configuration to host machines in the different physical locales. The VM placement engine examines the locale specific information when selecting a locale and a host machine for a VM. In some embodiments, some or all of the VMs in the logical configuration are each associated with a unique set of requirements, and the placement engine in turn finds the most suitable host machine and physical locale for those VMs based on the VM's requirements and the locale's specific properties. For example, a particular VM may require certain bandwidth guarantee, and the VM placement engine would in turn use the locale-specific information to identify a physical locale and a host machine that can provide the requisite bandwidth. Such locale-specific information may in some embodiments include an identification of a particular distributed logical network element (MPSE or MPRE) running on a particular host machine that has sufficient bandwidth to handle the guaranteed bandwidth requirement.

Though not illustrated, in some embodiments, the VM placement engine sends directives to each of the locales after the placements of the VMs are decided. In some embodiments, such directives are also locale-specific, such as to reserve a particular networking or computing resource in the locale for a particular VM, or to require a particular next hop for a particular distributed logical network element, etc. In some embodiments, the delivery of such directives or command relies on locale IDs that were assigned to the locales by the network manager as described by reference to FIG. 4 above.

III. Computing Device

As mentioned earlier, some embodiments of the invention are implemented by virtualization software or hypervisors running on computing devices serving as host machines. For some embodiments, FIG. 9 illustrates an example host machine 900 that is operating virtualization software 905. The virtualization software 905 allows the host machine to host virtual machines 911-914 as well as connecting the virtual machines to a physical network 990. This physical network 990 may span one or more data centers and include various physical switches and routers.

As illustrated, the host machine 900 has access to the physical network 990 through a physical NIC (PNIC) 995. The virtualization software 905 serves as the interface between the hosted VMs 911-914 and the physical NIC 995 (as well as other physical resources, such as processors and memory). Each of the VMs includes a virtual NIC (VNIC) for accessing the network through the virtualization software 905. Each VNIC in a VM is responsible for exchanging packets between the VM and the virtualization software 905. In some embodiments, the VNICs are software abstractions of physical NICs implemented by virtual NIC emulators.

The virtualization software 905 manages the operations of the VMs 911-914, and includes several components for managing the access of the VMs to the physical network (by implementing the logical networks to which the VMs connect, in some embodiments). As illustrated, the virtualization software 905 includes a physical switching element 920, a physical routing element 930, a controller interface 940, an uplink module 970, and a locale-specific configuration module 950.

The controller interface 940 receives control plane messages from a controller or a cluster of controllers 960. In some embodiments, these control plane message includes configuration data for configuring the various components of the virtualization software and/or the virtual machines (such as the physical switching element 920 and the physical routing element 930). In some embodiments, the control plane messages also include locale-specific configuration information from a central network manager or a local network manager.

The physical switching element 920 (or managed physical switching element, MPSE) delivers network data to and from the physical NIC 995, which interfaces the physical network 990. The physical switching element also includes a number of virtual ports (vPorts) that communicatively interconnects the physical NIC with the VMs 911-914, the physical routing element 930 and the controller interface 940. Each virtual port is associated with a unique L2 MAC address, in some embodiments. The physical switching element performs L2 link layer packet forwarding between any two network elements that are connected to its virtual ports. The physical switching element also performs L2 link layer packet forwarding between any network element connected to any one of its virtual ports and a reachable L2 network element on the physical network 990 (e.g., another VM running on another host).

The physical routing element 930 (or managed physical routing element, MPRE) performs L3 routing (e.g., by performing L3 IP address to L2 MAC address resolution) on data packets received from a virtual port on the physical switching element 920. In some embodiments, the virtual port that the physical routing element 930 is attached to is a sink port.

Each routed data packet is then sent back to the physical switching element 920 to be forwarded to its destination according to the resolved L2 MAC address. This destination can be another VM connected to a virtual port on the physical switching element 920, or a reachable L2 network element on the physical network 990 (e.g., another VM running on another host, a physical non-virtualized machine, etc.).

The locale specific configuration module 950 stores information specific to the physical locale of the host machine. The information is made available to the physical switching element 920 and the physical routing and bridging element 930, which uses the locale specific information to modify their behavior by e.g., favoring or disfavoring specific next hops. In some embodiments, the locale specific configuration module uses a locale identifier to determine if data received from controller interface 940 is a locale-specific configuration data that is applicable to this host machine. The locale specific configuration module 950 in some of these embodiments act as a filter and allow only relevant configuration data to be used to modify the behavior of the physical switching element 920 and the physical routing element 930.

The uplink module 970 relays data between the physical switching element 920 and the physical NIC 995. In some embodiments, the uplink module 970 allows the host machine 900 to serve as a tunnel endpoint for encapsulation overlay networks such as VXLAN and VLANs. VXLAN is an overlay network encapsulation protocol. An overlay network created by VXLAN encapsulation is sometimes referred to as a VXLAN network, or simply VXLAN. When a VM on the host 900 sends a data packet (e.g., an ethernet frame) to another VM in the same VXLAN network but on a different host, the uplink module 970 encapsulates the data packet using the VXLAN network's VNI and network addresses of the VTEP, before sending the packet to the physical network. The packet is tunneled through the physical network (i.e., the encapsulation renders the underlying packet transparent to the intervening network elements) to the destination host. The uplink module 970 also decapsulates incoming VXLAN packets and forwards only the original inner data packet to the destination VM.

In this document, the term “packet” refers to a collection of bits in a particular format sent across a network. One of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the term packet may be used herein to refer to various formatted collections of bits that may be sent across a network, such as Ethernet frames, TCP segments, UDP datagrams, IP packets, etc.

This specification refers throughout to computational and network environments that include virtual machines (VMs). However, virtual machines are merely one example of data compute nodes (DCNs) or data compute end nodes, also referred to as addressable nodes. DCNs may include non-virtualized physical hosts, virtual machines, containers that run on top of a host operating system without the need for a hypervisor or separate operating system, and hypervisor kernel network interface modules.

VMs, in some embodiments, operate with their own guest operating systems on a host using resources of the host virtualized by virtualization software (e.g., a hypervisor, virtual machine monitor, etc.). The tenant (i.e., the owner of the VM) can choose which applications to operate on top of the guest operating system. Some containers, on the other hand, are constructs that run on top of a host operating system without the need for a hypervisor or separate guest operating system. In some embodiments, the host operating system uses name spaces to isolate the containers from each other and therefore provides operating-system level segregation of the different groups of applications that operate within different containers. This segregation is akin to the VM segregation that is offered in hypervisor-virtualized environments that virtualize system hardware, and thus can be viewed as a form of virtualization that isolates different groups of applications that operate in different containers. Such containers are more lightweight than VMs.

Hypervisor kernel network interface modules, in some embodiments, is a non-VM DCN that includes a network stack with a hypervisor kernel network interface and receive/transmit threads. One example of a hypervisor kernel network interface module is the vmknic module that is part of the ESXi™ hypervisor of VMware, Inc.

One of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that while the specification refers to VMs, the examples given could be any type of DCNs, including physical hosts, VMs, non-VM containers, and hypervisor kernel network interface modules. In fact, the example networks could include combinations of different types of DCNs in some embodiments.

IV. Electronic System

Many of the above-described features and applications are implemented as software processes that are specified as a set of instructions recorded on a computer readable storage medium (also referred to as computer readable medium). When these instructions are executed by one or more processing unit(s) (e.g., one or more processors, cores of processors, or other processing units), they cause the processing unit(s) to perform the actions indicated in the instructions. Examples of computer readable media include, but are not limited to, CD-ROMs, flash drives, RAM chips, hard drives, EPROMs, etc. The computer readable media does not include carrier waves and electronic signals passing wirelessly or over wired connections.

In this specification, the term “software” is meant to include firmware residing in read-only memory or applications stored in magnetic storage, which can be read into memory for processing by a processor. Also, in some embodiments, multiple software inventions can be implemented as sub-parts of a larger program while remaining distinct software inventions. In some embodiments, multiple software inventions can also be implemented as separate programs. Finally, any combination of separate programs that together implement a software invention described here is within the scope of the invention. In some embodiments, the software programs, when installed to operate on one or more electronic systems, define one or more specific machine implementations that execute and perform the operations of the software programs.

FIG. 10 conceptually illustrates an electronic system 1000 with which some embodiments of the invention are implemented. The electronic system 1000 can be used to execute any of the control, virtualization, or operating system applications described above. The electronic system 1000 may be a computer (e.g., a desktop computer, personal computer, tablet computer, server computer, mainframe, a blade computer etc.), phone, PDA, or any other sort of electronic device. Such an electronic system includes various types of computer readable media and interfaces for various other types of computer readable media. Electronic system 1000 includes a bus 1005, processing unit(s) 1010, a system memory 1025, a read-only memory 1030, a permanent storage device 1035, input devices 1040, and output devices 1045.

The bus 1005 collectively represents all system, peripheral, and chipset buses that communicatively connect the numerous internal devices of the electronic system 1000. For instance, the bus 1005 communicatively connects the processing unit(s) 1010 with the read-only memory 1030, the system memory 1025, and the permanent storage device 1035.

From these various memory units, the processing unit(s) 1010 retrieves instructions to execute and data to process in order to execute the processes of the invention. The processing unit(s) may be a single processor or a multi-core processor in different embodiments.

The read-only-memory (ROM) 1030 stores static data and instructions that are needed by the processing unit(s) 1010 and other modules of the electronic system. The permanent storage device 1035, on the other hand, is a read-and-write memory device. This device is a non-volatile memory unit that stores instructions and data even when the electronic system 1000 is off. Some embodiments of the invention use a mass-storage device (such as a magnetic or optical disk and its corresponding disk drive) as the permanent storage device 1035.

Other embodiments use a removable storage device (such as a floppy disk, flash drive, etc.) as the permanent storage device. Like the permanent storage device 1035, the system memory 1025 is a read-and-write memory device. However, unlike storage device 1035, the system memory is a volatile read-and-write memory, such a random access memory. The system memory stores some of the instructions and data that the processor needs at runtime. In some embodiments, the invention's processes are stored in the system memory 1025, the permanent storage device 1035, and/or the read-only memory 1030. From these various memory units, the processing unit(s) 1010 retrieves instructions to execute and data to process in order to execute the processes of some embodiments.

The bus 1005 also connects to the input and output devices 1040 and 1045. The input devices enable the user to communicate information and select commands to the electronic system. The input devices 1040 include alphanumeric keyboards and pointing devices (also called “cursor control devices”). The output devices 1045 display images generated by the electronic system. The output devices include printers and display devices, such as cathode ray tubes (CRT) or liquid crystal displays (LCD). Some embodiments include devices such as a touchscreen that function as both input and output devices.

Finally, as shown in FIG. 10, bus 1005 also couples electronic system 1000 to a network 1065 through a network adapter (not shown). In this manner, the computer can be a part of a network of computers (such as a local area network (“LAN”), a wide area network (“WAN”), or an Intranet, or a network of networks, such as the Internet. Any or all components of electronic system 1000 may be used in conjunction with the invention.

Some embodiments include electronic components, such as microprocessors, storage and memory that store computer program instructions in a machine-readable or computer-readable medium (alternatively referred to as computer-readable storage media, machine-readable media, or machine-readable storage media). Some examples of such computer-readable media include RAM, ROM, read-only compact discs (CD-ROM), recordable compact discs (CD-R), rewritable compact discs (CD-RW), read-only digital versatile discs (e.g., DVD-ROM, dual-layer DVD-ROM), a variety of recordable/rewritable DVDs (e.g., DVD-RAM, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, etc.), flash memory (e.g., SD cards, mini-SD cards, micro-SD cards, etc.), magnetic and/or solid state hard drives, read-only and recordable Blu-Ray® discs, ultra density optical discs, any other optical or magnetic media, and floppy disks. The computer-readable media may store a computer program that is executable by at least one processing unit and includes sets of instructions for performing various operations. Examples of computer programs or computer code include machine code, such as is produced by a compiler, and files including higher-level code that are executed by a computer, an electronic component, or a microprocessor using an interpreter.

While the above discussion primarily refers to microprocessor or multi-core processors that execute software, some embodiments are performed by one or more integrated circuits, such as application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) or field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). In some embodiments, such integrated circuits execute instructions that are stored on the circuit itself.

As used in this specification, the terms “computer”, “server”, “processor”, and “memory” all refer to electronic or other technological devices. These terms exclude people or groups of people. For the purposes of the specification, the terms display or displaying means displaying on an electronic device. As used in this specification, the terms “computer readable medium,” “computer readable media,” and “machine readable medium” are entirely restricted to tangible, physical objects that store information in a form that is readable by a computer. These terms exclude any wireless signals, wired download signals, and any other ephemeral signals.

While the invention has been described with reference to numerous specific details, one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the invention can be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit of the invention. In addition, a number of the figures (including FIGS. 6 a-b) conceptually illustrate processes. The specific operations of these processes may not be performed in the exact order shown and described. The specific operations may not be performed in one continuous series of operations, and different specific operations may be performed in different embodiments. Furthermore, the process could be implemented using several sub-processes, or as part of a larger macro process. Thus, one of ordinary skill in the art would understand that the invention is not to be limited by the foregoing illustrative details, but rather is to be defined by the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: operating a set of distributed logical network elements for forwarding data packets, the set of distributed logical network elements defined by a first set of configuration data; identifying a second set of configuration data that is specific to a particular physical locale by using a locale identifier assigned to the particular physical locale; and using the identified second set of configuration data to modify behaviors of the set of distributed logical network elements.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of distributed logical network elements comprises a managed physical switching element that is a local instantiation of a logical switch.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the set of distributed logical network element further comprises a managed physical routing element that is a local instantiation of a logical router.
 4. The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving the locale identifier from a network manager during an initial configuration.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the modified behavior comprises using a set of locale-specific parameters to determine a next hop.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the modified behavior comprises guaranteeing bandwidth for a particular virtual machine.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first set of configuration data is not specific to a particular locale.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the second set of configuration data comprises a set of route entries that specify the locale identifier of the particular locale.
 9. A computing device situated in a particular physical locale, the computing device comprising: a plurality of virtual machines (VMs); a locale identifier assigned to the particular physical locale, the locale identifier for identifying directives targeted at the particular locale; and a virtualization software for hosting the plurality of VMs and for operating a set of distributed logical network elements for forwarding data packets to and from the VMs, wherein a set of configuration data defines the set of distributed logical network elements and the identified directives modifies the behaviors of the set of distributed logical network elements.
 10. The computing device of claim 9, wherein the set of distributed logical network elements comprises a managed physical switching element that is a local instantiation of a logical switch.
 11. The computing device of claim 10, wherein the set of distributed logical network element further comprises a managed physical routing element that is a local instantiation of a logical router.
 12. The computing device of claim 9, wherein the modified behavior comprises using a set of locale-specific parameters to determine a next hop.
 13. The computing device of claim 9, wherein the modified behavior comprises guaranteeing bandwidth for a particular virtual machine.
 14. The computing device of claim 9, wherein the set of identified directives comprises a set of route entries that specify the locale identifier of the particular locale.
 15. The computing device of claim 9, wherein the locale identifier is for distinguishing configuration data specific to the particular physical locale from configuration data specific to other physical locales.
 16. A method for managing a network spanning a plurality of physical locales, the method comprising: assigning a plurality of locale identifiers to the plurality of physical locales, each physical locale assigned a unique locale identifier; configuring a logical network element that spans the plurality of physical locales, each physical locale comprising a plurality of host machines that operate distributed instances of the logical network element as physical forwarding elements; and configuring the host machines of a particular physical locale by using configuration data having modifiers based on the locale identifier of the particular physical locale.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein the modifiers of the configuration data is for modifying the behavior of the physical forwarding elements in host machines of the particular physical locale.
 18. The method of claim 16, wherein the logical network element is a logical switching element.
 19. The method of claim 16, wherein the logical network element is a logical routing element.
 20. The method of claim 16, wherein the configuration data having modifiers comprises a set of route entries that specify the locale identifier of the particular locale. 